Inkjet technology has expanded its application to high-speed, commercial and industrial printing, in addition to home and office usage. This technology is a non-impact printing method in which an electronic signal controls and directs droplets or a stream of ink that can be deposited on a wide variety of substrates. Current inkjet printing involves forcing the ink drops through small nozzles by thermal ejection, piezoelectric pressure or oscillation, onto the surface of a media. There are several reasons that inkjet printing has become a popular way of recording images on various media surfaces, particularly paper. Some of these reasons include low printer noise, capability of high-speed recording, high quality and multi-color recording. Additionally, these advantages can be obtained at a relatively low price to consumers. However, though there has been great improvement in inkjet printing, accompanying this improvement are increased demands by consumers in this area, e.g., higher speeds, higher resolution, full color image formation, increased stability, more permanent images, etc.
With respect to inkjet ink chemistry, the majority of commercial inkjet inks are water-based. Thus, their constituents are often water-soluble (as in the case with many dyes) or water dispersible (as in the case with many pigments). Because of their water-based nature, inkjet ink systems often tend to exhibit poorer image fade and durability when exposed to water or high humidity compared to other photographic or printing methods. Various compounds and polymers have been incorporated in view of improving ink performances. However, such incorporation often results in creating poor printing quality and/or damages to the printhead containing such inks.